Measuring a water cut of hydrocarbon fluid in a production pipe

ABSTRACT

The present disclosure describes methods and systems, including computer-implemented methods, computer program products, and computer systems, for measuring a water cut for hydrocarbon fluid in a production pipe. One method includes transmitting a microwave through a first waveguide attached to a production pipe, wherein the microwave is directed to the hydrocarbon fluid in the production pipe; and obtaining, measurement results based on reflection or propagation of the microwave, wherein the measurement results are used to determine a water cut of the hydrocarbon fluid.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

This application is a continuation of and claims the benefit of priorityto U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/400,631, filed on May 1, 2019,which claims priority to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/191,071,filed on Nov. 14, 2018, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,466,182, which claims thebenefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/585,965, filed on Nov.14, 2017, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated byreference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This disclosure relates to measuring a water cut of hydrocarbon fluid ina production pipe.

BACKGROUND

In an oil and gas production operation, hydrocarbon fluid is producedwith multiphase flows. These flows can include oil, gas, and water. Theamount of water in the produced fluid can be referred to as the watercut of the fluid. The water cut of the produced fluid is closelymonitored to determine operational parameters such as oil/water contactlevel and water breakthrough. Accurate measurement of the water cut isthus important to the oil and gas production operation. The water cutmeasurement can also be referred to as on-line water determination.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure describes methods and systems, includingcomputer-implemented methods, computer program products, and computersystems, for measuring a water cut of hydrocarbon fluid in a productionpipe. One method for measuring a water cut of hydrocarbon fluid in aproduction pipe includes: transmitting a microwave through a firstwaveguide attached to a production pipe, wherein the microwave isdirected to the hydrocarbon fluid in the production pipe; and obtaining,measurement results based on reflection or propagation of the microwave,wherein the measurement results are used to determine a water cut of thehydrocarbon fluid.

The foregoing and other implementations can each, optionally, includeone or more of the following features, alone or in combination:

A first aspect, combinable with the general implementation, wherein thefirst waveguide uses a first filling material further comprising:determining that the water cut is within a particular water cut range;in response to determining that the water cut is within a particularwater cut range, replacing the first waveguide with a second waveguide,wherein the second waveguide uses a second filling material that isdifferent than the first filling material; transmitting a secondmicrowave through the second waveguide; and obtaining second measurementresults based on the second microwave.

A second aspect, combinable with any of the previous aspects, whereinthe first filling material comprises quartz.

A third aspect, combinable with any of the previous aspects, wherein thesecond filling material comprises sapphire.

A fourth aspect, combinable with any of the previous aspects, whereinthe first waveguide has a size that is substantially similar to a sizeof the production pipe.

A fifth aspect, combinable with any of the previous aspects, wherein themeasurement results comprise magnitudes and phases of S parameters.Equivalently, The measurements can be in the time domain, for exampletravel time of the signal, losses in magnitude and dispersion.

Other implementations of this aspect include corresponding computersystems, apparatuses, and computer programs recorded on one or morecomputer storage devices, each configured to perform the actions of themethods. A system of one or more computers can be configured to performparticular operations or actions by virtue of having software, firmware,hardware, or a combination of software, firmware, or hardware installedon the system that, in operation, cause the system to perform theactions. One or more computer programs can be configured to performparticular operations or actions by virtue of including instructionsthat, when executed by data processing apparatus, cause the apparatus toperform the actions.

The details of one or more implementations of the subject matter of thisspecification are set forth in the accompanying drawings and thesubsequent description. Other features, aspects, and advantages of thesubject matter will become apparent from the description, the drawings,and the claims.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram that illustrates an example water cutmeasurement system, according to an implementation.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram that illustrates another example water cutmeasurement system, according to an implementation.

FIG. 3 is a chart illustrating example cutoff frequencies for waveguidesof different diameters, according to an implementation.

FIG. 4 illustrates example measurement results using quartz as thefilling material of the waveguides, according to an implementation.

FIG. 5 illustrates example measurement results using sapphire as thefilling material of the waveguides, according to an implementation.

FIG. 6 illustrates example measurement results using waveguides having adifferent diameter, according to an implementation

FIG. 7 is a high level architecture block diagram of a water cutmeasuring system, according to an implementation.

Like reference numbers and designations in the various drawings indicatelike elements.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following description is presented to enable any person skilled inthe art to make and use the disclosed subject matter, and is provided inthe context of one or more particular implementations. Variousmodifications to the disclosed implementations will be readily apparentto those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined hereinmay be applied to other implementations and applications withoutdeparting from scope of the disclosure. Thus, the present disclosure isnot intended to be limited to the described and/or illustratedimplementations, but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent withthe principles and features disclosed herein.

This disclosure generally describes methods and systems, includingcomputer-implemented methods, computer program products, and computersystems, for measuring the water cut of hydrocarbon fluid in aproduction pipe. In some operations, coaxial probes can be inserted onthe wall of the production pipe to measure the water cut. However, thecoaxial probe offers little penetration into the fluid, and thus may notobtain accurate measurement.

In some cases, waveguides can be used to direct microwaves to thehydrocarbon fluid in the production pipe. The microwave can propagatethrough the hydrocarbon fluid or be reflected from the hydrocarbonfluid. These propagated or reflected microwaves can be measured todetermine the current water cut of the hydrocarbon fluid. In someimplementations, the diameter of the waveguides can be determined basedon the diameter of the production pipe. In addition, differentwaveguides having different shapes and filling materials can be used.Each of the different filling material can have electrical propertiescan produce accurate measurements in a particular range of water cut.FIGS. 1-7 and associated descriptions provide additional details ofthese implementations.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram that illustrates an example water cutmeasurement system 100, according to an implementation. The examplesystem 100 includes waveguides 120 a and 120 b that are attached to aproduction pipe 110. A network analyzer 140 is connected with thewaveguides 120 a and 120 b. The network analyzer 140 is communicativelycoupled with a controller 150.

In the oil and gas industry, a production pipe, for example theproduction pipe 110, refers to a pipe that transports hydrocarbon fluid.In some implementations, the production pipe 110 can be constructedusing carbon steel grade. In some cases, the production pipe 110 can beused to transport hydrocarbon fluid that is extracted by a wellboredrilling system to a storage tank at the drilling site. The productionpipe 110 can also be used to transport hydrocarbon fluid between otherendpoints in a hydrocarbon producing system, either on site or off site.In the illustrated example, the production pipe 110 transportshydrocarbon fluid 102. In some cases, the hydrocarbon fluid 102represents fluid that is produced from a well system in the field. Inthese cases, the hydrocarbon fluid can also be referred to as productionfluid. The hydrocarbon fluid 102 can include a mixture of oil, gas,water, or any combinations thereof. As illustrated, the production pipe110 has a diameter 112.

Electromagnetically, materials such as fluid mixtures are characterizedby two parameters: the permittivity and the magnetic permeability. Formost materials, including downhole fluid mixtures in the production pipe110, the magnetic permeability remains constant, while the permittivityvaries as a function of frequency, temperature, and concentration of aparticular component. The permittivity can be represented as a complexvalue, where the real part of the complex value is related to thecapacitive properties of the material, and the imaginary part of thecomplex value is related to different loss mechanisms in the material.

The network analyzer 140 is a network analyzer that is configured tomeasure the magnitude and phase of the S parameters of an electricalnetwork. The network analyzer 140 can also perform system errorcorrection on the measurement results. In some implementations, thenetwork analyzer 140 can be a vector network analyzer (VNA). The Sparameters, also referred to as the scattering parameters or thes-parameters, describe the electrical behavior of linear electricalnetworks when undergoing various steady state stimuli by electricalsignals. The permittivity of a material can be measured by sendingelectromagnetic waves through it and computing the S parameters. In theillustrated example, the network analyzer 140 can measure the magnitudesand the phase of the S parameter through reflections and propagations ofmicrowaves. In some implementations, the network analyzer 140 caninclude one or more sets of transmitters and receivers. Each transmitterand receiver can include amplifiers, filters, and other electroniccomponents that are configured to transmit or receive electronicsignals.

The network analyzer 140 includes ports 142 a and 142 b. Each of theports 142 a and 142 b can be used as interface to connect to theelectronic network to be measured. In the illustrated example, a cable126 a connects the waveguide 120 a to the port 142 a; and a cable 126 bconnects the waveguide 120 b to the port 142 b. The cable 126 a and 126b can be coaxial cables, fiber optical cables, or other media that canbe used to transmit microwaves. In an example operation, the networkanalyzer 140 can generate electronic signals. The electronic signals areelectromagnetic waves having amplitudes and phases. In one example, theelectromagnetic waves can be microwaves, having frequencies between 300MegaHertz (MHz) and 300 GigaHertz (GHz). The electromagnetic waves canbe transmitted from the port 142 a, and propagate over the cable 126 ato reach the waveguide 120 a. In the illustrated example, theelectromagnetic wave is referred to as microwave 122. In some cases, themicrowave 122 can further propagate to the waveguide 120 b over thehydrocarbon fluid 102. The propagated signal can be received at the port142 b through the cable 126 b. Alternatively or additionally, themicrowave 122 can reflect from the hydrocarbon fluid 102 and thereflected signal can be received at the port 142 a over the cable 126 a.The S parameters measurements of the propagated signal and the reflectedsignal can be used to determine the permittivity of the hydrocarbonfluid 102, and thus the water cut of the hydrocarbon fluid 102. FIGS.4-6 and associated descriptions provide additional details of theseimplementations.

The waveguides 120 a and 120 b have a diameter 128. In someimplementations, the diameter 128 of the waveguides 120 a and 120 b aresubstantially similar to the diameter 112 of the production pipe 110. Insome implementations, the diameter of the production pipe 110 can bechosen based on the cutoff frequencies of different propagating modes.

In a pipe such as the production pipe 110, there are two kinds ofpropagating modes or traverse modes for electromagnetic waves topropagate through: the transverse electric (TE) and transverse magnetic(TM) modes. In a TE mode, there is a magnetic field along the directionof propagation but there is no electric field in the direction ofpropagation. In a TM mode, there is an electric field along thedirection of propagation but there is no Magnetic field in the directionof propagation. The propagation of the electromagnetic waves in the pipecan be characterized by the Maxwell's equations, which yield multiplesolutions. Each solution can be represented as a propagation sub mode,denoted as TE₁₁, TE₁₂, TM₀₁, TM₁₁. The cutoff frequency for a particularmode or sub mode represents the frequency below which there is nopropagation of that particular mode or sub mode. For the sub modes inthe TM mode, TM₀₁ has the lowest cutoff frequency. For the sub modes inthe TE mode, TE₁₁ has the lowest cutoff frequency.

FIG. 3 is a chart 300 illustrating example cutoff frequencies forwaveguides of different diameters, according to an implementation. Inthe illustrated example, the production pipe has a 3-inch diameter, andthe waveguides have 3-inch diameters and 1-inch diameters. In the chart300, point 302 represent the cutoff frequency of the TE₁₁ sub mode forwaveguides having a 3-inch diameter. Point 304 represents the cutofffrequency of the TM₀₁ mode for waveguides having a 3-inch diameter.Points 306 and 308 represent the cutoff frequencies of the TE₁₁ mode andTM₀₁ modes for waveguides having a 1-inch diameter. As illustrated, ifwaveguides having a 3-inch diameter is used to propagate microwavesthrough a pipe with similar size, for example having a 3-inch diameter,the cutoff frequencies of the TM₀₁ and TE₁₁ sub modes are the lowestcutoff frequencies, as represented by the points 302 and 304,respectively. In other words, no other propagation sub modes would bepresent to generate interfering measurements. On the other hand, forwaveguides that are much smaller than the pipe, for example, forwaveguides having a 1-inch diameter, there are many other sub modes thatmay have cutoff frequencies that are lower than the cutoff frequenciesrepresented by the points 306 and 308, as represented by differentpoints on the left of the points 306, which would produce interferingmeasurement results. Therefore, using waveguides having a substantiallysimilar diameter, for example within 10%, as the production pipe thattransport the hydrocarbon fluid can provide a better measurement result.In some cases, the waveguides may use different shapes, for examplehaving a rectangular cross section instead of a circular cross section.The rectangular cross section can have a length and a width, with lengthlarger than the width. In these or other cases, instead of the diameter,the size of the waveguides can be represented by the length of therectangular cross section. In these cases, waveguides having the sizethat is substantially similar to the size of the pipe can be used.

In some cases, the size of the waveguides can be chosen based on thecutoff frequencies for the TE₁₁ sub mode and the TM₀₁ sub mode. Forexample, the size of the waveguides can be determined so that the cutofffrequency for the TE₁₁ sub mode is higher than the cutoff frequency forthe TM₀₁ mode for that particular size of the waveguides.

The waveguides 120 a and 120 b represent waveguides that are configuredto guide microwave 122 through the hydrocarbon fluid 102 that flowsinside the production pipe 110. In some implementations, a pair ofwaveguides 120 a-b having the same size and filling materials are usedto measure propagating microwaves. Alternatively or additionally, onewaveguide, for example, the waveguide 120 a or 120 b, can be used tomeasure reflected microwaves. In the illustrated example, the waveguides120 a and 120 b are attached to opposite sides of the production pipe110 and thus can form a transmitter-receiver pair. The pair ofwaveguides 120 a-b are positioned in a vertical alignment so thatmicrowave can propagate from one waveguide to the other. In one exampleoperation, the waveguide 120 a directs the microwave 122 to propagationin a downward direction, through the hydrocarbon fluid 102, to thewaveguide 120 b. The waveguides 120 a and 120 b can be attached to theproduction pipe 110 by welding, flanges, threadolets, or any otherinstallation techniques.

Returning to FIG. 1, in some implementations, the filling materials ofthe waveguides 120 a and 120 b can be chosen based on the amount ofwater in the hydrocarbon fluid 102 and in the production pipe 110. Insome cases, filling materials having low varying permittivity and lowlosses (low imaginary part of the permittivity) for a wide range oftemperatures can be used. These materials can reduce the uncertaintyintroduced by the temperature effect. Examples of the filling materialsinclude quartz, sapphire, zirconia, rutile, diamond and titaniumdioxide. Alternatively, materials having well-known electricalproperties, such as ceramic derived materials or casting resinmaterials, can be used.

FIG. 4 illustrates example measurement results using quartz as thefilling material of the waveguides, according to an implementation. FIG.4 includes charts 410 and 420, illustrating the magnitude and phase ofthe S parameter for different water cuts (obtained by mixing differentpercentages of oil and water), respectively. In some implementations,the S parameter can be measured based on the microwave that propagatefrom one waveguide to the other waveguide across the pipe. Suchmeasurement results can be denoted as S21, as shown by curves 414 and424. The S parameter can also be measured based on the microwave that isreflected from the same waveguide. Such measurement results can bedenoted as S11, as shown by curves 412 and 422. The x-axis of bothcharts 410 and 420 denote water cut of the hydrocarbon fluid to bemeasured. The left and right y-axis of the chart 410 denote the ratiowith respect to the signal transmitted from the vector network analyzerof the S11 and S21 measurement, respectively. The left and right y-axisof the chart 420 denote the phase in radian units of the S11 and S21measurement, respectively. In some implementations, the fieldmeasurement results can be lower than the number shown in FIG. 4 due tolosses in propagations.

As illustrated in the chart 410, the peak of the curves 412 and 414 areobtained at about 5% water cut. The magnitude of the S parameter fromthe S21 measurement increases as the water cut increases before thewater cut reaches the peak, and decreases as the water cut increasesafter the water cut reaches the peak. Therefore, if we obtain aparticular magnitude measurement of the S parameter, for example at 0.3for S21 measurement, we may have two possible water cut values that canmatch to this measurement result, for example, 0.03 and 0.07. However,the phase measurement for these two water cuts are different, as shownin the chart 420. Therefore, by obtaining both the magnitude and thephase of the S parameter, the water cut of the hydrocarbon fluid can bedetermined. In some implementations, the S parameters for water cut canbe obtained based on lab measurement (reference/calibration, measured byother devices such as a separator), numerically obtained data(simulation), and a combination thereof. In some implementations, thewater cut can be determined based on either the S11 measurement or S21measurement. Alternatively, or additionally, both S11 and S21measurements can be conducted, and their results can be analyzedtogether to obtain a more accurate result. Furthermore, similarmeasurement can be performed in time domain by using signal generatorsand signal analyzers.

As shown in the chart 410, the measured magnitude of the S parameterusing waveguides having quartz as the filling material are relativelyflat after water cut reaches beyond about 15%. In other words, themeasurement results are less sensitive to the changing of water cutafter about 15%. Therefore, in the range where the water cut is beyond15%, noise in the measurement data may become a significant factor andmake the measurement less accurate.

FIG. 5 illustrates example measurement results using sapphire as thefilling material of the waveguides, according to an implementation. FIG.5 includes charts 510 and 520, illustrating the magnitude and phase ofthe S parameter for different water cut, respectively. In FIG. 5, curves512 and 522 represent the measurement results obtained based onreflection; and curves 514 and 524 represent the measurement resultsobtained based on propagation.

As illustrated in the chart 510, the peaks of the curves 512 and 514 areobtained at about 15% water cut. The slope of the curves 512 and 514 arerelatively steep between about 15% to about 45% water cut. Therefore,waveguides filled with sapphire can provide better measurement resultsthan waveguides filled with quartz for water cut within this range.

As discussed previously, the measurement results of the S parameter varybased on diameters of the production pipe and the waveguides. Themeasurement results in FIG. 4 and FIG. 5 are obtained based on theproduction pipe having a diameter of 76.2 millimeter (mm) and thewaveguides having a diameter of 62 mm. FIG. 6 illustrates examplemeasurement results using waveguides having a diameter of 20 mm,according to an implementation. FIG. 6 includes charts 610 and 620,illustrating the magnitude and phase of the S parameter for differentwater cut, respectively. In FIG. 6, curves 612 and 622 represent themeasurement results obtained based on reflection; and curves 614 and 624represent the measurement results obtained based on propagation. Asillustrated in FIG. 6, because the waveguides have a diameter that ismuch smaller than the pipe, the magnitude curves have many local maximaand minima, which makes it difficult to determine the water cut based onthe measurement.

Returning to FIG. 1, the system 100 also includes the controller 150.The controller 150 represents a computing device that is configured todetermine water cut based on the measurement results obtained by thevector network analyzer 140. The controller 150 is connected with thevector network analyzer 140 using wireless technologies, wirelinetechnologies, or a combination thereof. In some implementations, thecontroller 150 can store, or have access to the data of S parametermeasurements for different water cuts. For example, the controller 150can store the measurement data as shown in FIGS. 4-6. The controller 150can receive the measurement results from the vector network analyzer140, and determine the current water cut of the hydrocarbon fluid 102 bycomparing the measurement results with the stored data (from measurementor numerical experiments). In some implementations, as illustrated, thecontroller 150 can be implemented on a different hardware platform asthe vector network analyzer 140. Alternatively, the controller 150 canbe implemented as a component of the vector network analyzer 140.

In some operations, the waveguides 120 a and 120 b can be replaced basedon the current water cut of the hydrocarbon fluid 102. As discussedpreviously, waveguides with different filling materials can be suitablefor different water cut ranges. Therefore, by monitoring the progressionof the water cut of the hydrocarbon fluid 102, waveguides with differentfilling materials can be substituted if the water cut has passed athreshold. In one example, waveguides using quartz as filling materialcan be used in initial measurement. The controller 150 can monitor thecurrent water cut of the hydrocarbon fluid 102. If the current water cutrises over 15%, the controller 150 can output an alert. Operationalpersonnel can replace the waveguides having quartz as filling materialwith waveguides having sapphire as filling material. If the water cutpasses another threshold, waveguides using different filling materials,for example, zirconia or titanium dioxide, can further replace thewaveguides having sapphire as the filling material. This approach canprovide accurate measurement for hydrocarbon fluid in different watercut ranges.

In some cases, the permittivity, and therefore the S parameters, canalso be impacted by the temperature of the hydrocarbon fluid 102. Insome implementations, the system 100 can include one or more temperaturesensors 104 that are attached the production pipe 110 to measure thetemperature of the hydrocarbon fluid 102. The measured temperature datacan be transmitted to the controller 150 for analysis. The controller150 can correct any bias of the measurement results based on themeasured temperature. In some implementations, the temperature sensor104 can be implemented as a component of the waveguides 120 a and 120 b.

In some implementations, instead of replacing waveguides, waveguideshaving different filling materials can be attached to the productionpipe. Measurement results obtained through different waveguides can beused to determine water cut in different ranges. FIG. 2 is a schematicdiagram that illustrates another example water cut measurement system200, according to an implementation. The example system 200 includes asecond pair of waveguides 130 a and 130 b that are attached to theproduction pipe 110. The second pair of waveguides 130 a and 130 b areconnected to ports 132 a and 132 b of the vector network analyzer 140using cables 136 a and 136 b, respectively.

In some implementations, the waveguides 130 a and 130 b use fillingmaterials that are selected for water cut measurement in a range that isdifferent than the waveguides 120 a and 120 b. For example, thewaveguides 120 a and 120 b can use quartz as the filling material andthus are suitable for measuring water cut between 0 to 15%, while thewaveguides 130 a and 130 b can use sapphire as the filling material andthus are suitable for measuring water cut between 15 to 45%. In theinitial measurement, the controller 150 determines the water cut of thehydrocarbon fluid 102 based on measurements obtained through thewaveguides 120 a and 120 b. In one example operation, the controller 150can transmit a command to the vector network analyzer 140 to transmitand receive electronic signals through the ports 142 a and 142 b. Thecontroller 150 can determine the current water cut within a first watercut range, for example, between 0% and 15%. The controller 150 cancontinue to monitor the water cut. If the controller 150 determines thatthe current water cut is in a different water cut range, for example,between 15% and 45%, the controller 150 can determine the current watercut based on measurement results using the waveguides 130 a and 130 b.In one example, the controller 150 can transmit a command to the vectornetwork analyzer 140 to stop transmitting and receiving electronicsignals through the ports 142 a and 142 b. Instead, the controller 150can instruct the vector network analyzer 140 to transmit and receiveelectronic signals through the ports 132 a and 132 b, which result inmicrowave 132 directed by the waveguides 130 a and 130 b. Accordingly,the controller 150 can determine the current water cut based onmeasurements obtained through the waveguides 130 a and 130 b. Thisapproach can provide accurate measurement for different water cutregions without replacing the waveguides during the measurements.

In some cases, a production pipe can have different diameters atdifferent locations. For example, the production pipe can includedifferent segments that have different diameters. Waveguides havingdifferent diameters can be attached to different segments to match thediameter of the respective segment. These different waveguides can beconnected to the same or different vector network analyzers. Byobtaining the measurements through these different waveguides havingdifferent filling materials and sizes, the water cut of the hydrocarbonfluid in different segments of the production pipe can be determined.

FIG. 7 is a high level architecture block diagram of a water cutmeasuring system 700 that measures water cut based on the methodsdescribed herein, according to an implementation. At a high level, theillustrated system 700 includes a water cut measuring computer 702coupled with a network 730. The water cut measuring computer 702 can beused to implement the controller 150 discussed in FIGS. 1 and 2.

The described illustration is only one possible implementation of thedescribed subject matter and is not intended to limit the disclosure tothe single described implementation. Those of ordinary skill in the artwill appreciate the fact that the described components can be connected,combined, and/or used in alternative ways, consistent with thisdisclosure.

The network 730 facilitates communication between the computer 702 andother components, for example, components that obtain observed data fora location and transmit the observed data to the computer 702. Thenetwork 730 can be a wireless or a wireline network. The network 730 canalso be a memory pipe, a hardware connection, or any internal orexternal communication paths between the components.

The computer 702 includes a computing system configured to perform themethod as described herein. In some cases, the algorithm of the methodcan be implemented in an executable computing code, for example, C/C++or MATLAB executable codes. In some cases, the computer 702 can includea standalone Linux system that runs batch applications. In some cases,the computer 702 can include mobile or personal computers that havesufficient memory size to process each block of the geophysical data.

The computer 702 may comprise a computer that includes an input device,such as a keypad, keyboard, touch screen, microphone, speech recognitiondevice, other devices that can accept user information, and/or an outputdevice that conveys information associated with the operation of thecomputer 702, including digital data, visual and/or audio information,or a GUI.

The computer 702 can serve as a client, network component, a server, adatabase, or other persistency, and/or any other component of the system700. In some implementations, one or more components of the computer 702may be configured to operate within a cloud-computing-based environment.

At a high level, the computer 702 is an electronic computing deviceoperable to receive, transmit, process, store, or manage data andinformation associated with the system 700. According to someimplementations, the computer 702 may also include, or be communicablycoupled with, an application server, e-mail server, web server, cachingserver, streaming data server, business intelligence (BI) server, and/orother servers.

The computer 702 can receive requests over network 730 from a clientapplication (for example, executing on another computer 702) and respondto the received requests by processing said requests in an appropriatesoftware application. In addition, requests may also be sent to thecomputer 702 from internal users (for example, from a command console orby another appropriate access method), external or third parties, otherautomated applications, as well as any other appropriate entities,individuals, systems, or computers.

Each of the components of the computer 702 can communicate using asystem bus 703. In some implementations, any and/or all the componentsof the computer 702, both hardware and/or software, may interface witheach other and/or the interface 704, over the system bus 703, using anapplication programming interface (API) 712 and/or a service layer 713.The API 712 may include specifications for routines, data structures,and object classes. The API 712 may be either computerlanguage-independent or -dependent and refer to a complete interface, asingle function, or even a set of APIs. The service layer 713 providessoftware services to the computer 702 and/or the system 700. Thefunctionality of the computer 702 may be accessible for all serviceconsumers using this service layer. Software services, such as thoseprovided by the service layer 713, provide reusable, defined businessfunctionalities, through a defined interface. For example, the interfacemay be software written in JAVA, C++, or other suitable languagesproviding data in Extensible Markup Language (XML) format or othersuitable formats. While illustrated as an integrated component of thecomputer 702, alternative implementations may illustrate the API 712and/or the service layer 713 as stand-alone components in relation toother components of the computer 702 and/or system 700. Moreover, any orall parts of the API 712 and/or the service layer 713 may be implementedas child or sub-modules of another software module, enterpriseapplication, or hardware module, without departing from the scope ofthis disclosure.

The computer 702 includes an interface 704. Although illustrated as asingle interface 704 in FIG. 7, two or more interfaces 704 may be usedaccording to particular needs, desires, or particular implementations ofthe computer 702 and/or system 700. The interface 704 is used by thecomputer 702 for communicating with other systems in a distributedenvironment—including within the system 700—connected to the network 730(whether illustrated or not). Generally, the interface 704 compriseslogic encoded in software and/or hardware in a suitable combination andoperable to communicate with the network 730. More specifically, theinterface 704 may comprise software supporting one or more communicationprotocols associated with communications such that the network 730 orinterface's hardware is operable to communicate physical signals withinand outside of the illustrated system 700.

The computer 702 includes a processor 705. Although illustrated as asingle processor 705 in FIG. 7, two or more processors may be usedaccording to particular needs, desires, or particular implementations ofthe computer 702 and/or the system 700. Generally, the processor 705executes instructions and manipulates data to perform the operations inthe computer 702. Specifically, the processor 705 executes thefunctionality required for processing geophysical data.

The computer 702 also includes a memory 706 that holds data for thecomputer 702 and/or other components of the system 700. Althoughillustrated as a single memory 706 in FIG. 7, two or more memories maybe used according to particular needs, desires, or particularimplementations of the computer 702 and/or the system 700. While memory706 is illustrated as an integral component of the computer 702, inalternative implementations, memory 706 can be external to the computer702 and/or the system 700.

The application 707 is an algorithmic software engine providingfunctionality according to particular needs, desires, or particularimplementations of the computer 702 and/or the system 700, particularlywith respect to functionality required for processing geophysical data.For example, application 707 can serve as one or morecomponents/applications described in FIGS. 1-6. Further, althoughillustrated as a single application 707, the application 707 may beimplemented as multiple applications 707, on the computer 702. Inaddition, although illustrated as integral to the computer 702, inalternative implementations, the application 707 can be external to thecomputer 702 and/or the system 700.

There may be any number of computers 702 associated with, or externalto, the system 700 and communicating over network 730. Further, theterms “client,” “user,” and other appropriate terminology may be usedinterchangeably, as appropriate, without departing from the scope ofthis disclosure. Moreover, this disclosure contemplates that many usersmay use one computer 702, or that one user may use multiple computers702.

Implementations of the subject matter and the functional operationsdescribed in this specification can be implemented in digital electroniccircuitry, in tangibly embodied computer software or firmware, incomputer hardware, including the structures disclosed in thisspecification and their structural equivalents, or in combinations ofone or more of them. Implementations of the subject matter described inthis specification can be implemented as one or more computer programs,that is, one or more modules of computer program instructions encoded ona tangible, non-transitory computer-storage medium for execution by, orto control the operation of, data processing apparatus. Alternatively,or in addition, the program instructions can be encoded on anartificially generated propagated signal, for example, amachine-generated electrical, optical, or electromagnetic signal that isgenerated to encode information for transmission to suitable receiverapparatus for execution by a data processing apparatus. Thecomputer-storage medium can be a machine-readable storage device, amachine-readable storage substrate, a random or serial access memorydevice, or a combination of one or more of them.

The terms “data processing apparatus,” “computer,” or “electroniccomputer device” (or equivalent as understood by one of ordinary skillin the art) refer to data processing hardware and encompass all kinds ofapparatus, devices, and machines for processing data, including by wayof example, a programmable processor, a computer, or multiple processorsor computers. The apparatus can also be, or further include, specialpurpose logic circuitry, for example, a central processing unit (CPU), afield programmable gate array (FPGA), or an application specificintegrated circuit (ASIC). In some implementations, the data processingapparatus and/or special purpose logic circuitry may be hardware-basedand/or software-based. The apparatus can optionally include code thatcreates an execution environment for computer programs, for example,code that constitutes processor firmware, a protocol stack, a databasemanagement system, an operating system, or a combination of one or moreof them. The present disclosure contemplates the use of data processingapparatuses with or without conventional operating systems, for exampleLINUX, UNIX, WINDOWS, MAC OS, ANDROID, IOS, or any other suitableconventional operating system.

A computer program, which may also be referred to or described as aprogram, software, a software application, a module, a software module,a script, or code can be written in any form of programming language,including compiled or interpreted languages, or declarative orprocedural languages, and it can be deployed in any form, including as astand-alone program or as a module, component, subroutine, or other unitsuitable for use in a computing environment. A computer program may, butneed not, correspond to a file in a file system. A program can be storedin a portion of a file that holds other programs or data, for example,one or more scripts stored in a markup language document, in a singlefile dedicated to the program in question, or in multiple coordinatedfiles, for example, files that store one or more modules, sub-programs,or portions of code. A computer program can be deployed to be executedon one computer or on multiple computers that are located at one site ordistributed across multiple sites and interconnected by a communicationnetwork. While portions of the programs illustrated in the variousfigures are shown as individual modules that implement the variousfeatures and functionality through various objects, methods, or otherprocesses, the programs may instead include a number of sub-modules,third-party services, components, libraries, and such, as appropriate.Conversely, the features and functionality of various components can becombined into single components, as appropriate.

The processes and logic flows described in this specification can beperformed by one or more programmable computers executing one or morecomputer programs to perform functions by operating on input data andgenerating output. The processes and logic flows can also be performedby, and apparatus can also be implemented as, special purpose logiccircuitry, for example, a CPU, an FPGA, or an ASIC.

Computers suitable for the execution of a computer program can be basedon general or special purpose microprocessors, both, or any other kindof CPU. Generally, a CPU will receive instructions and data from aread-only memory (ROM) or a random access memory (RAM) or both. Theessential elements of a computer are a CPU for performing or executinginstructions and one or more memory devices for storing instructions anddata. Generally, a computer will also include, or be operatively coupledto, receive data from or transfer data to, or both, one or more massstorage devices for storing data, for example, magnetic, magneto-opticaldisks, or optical disks. However, a computer need not have such devices.Moreover, a computer can be embedded in another device, for example, amobile telephone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a mobile audio orvideo player, a game console, a global positioning system (GPS)receiver, or a portable storage device, for example, a universal serialbus (USB) flash drive, to name just a few.

Computer-readable media (transitory or non-transitory, as appropriate)suitable for storing computer program instructions and data include allforms of non-volatile memory, media and memory devices, including by wayof example semiconductor memory devices, for example, erasableprogrammable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasableprogrammable read-only memory (EEPROM), and flash memory devices;magnetic disks, for example, internal hard disks or removable disks;magneto-optical disks; and CD-ROM, DVD+/-R, DVD-RAM, and DVD-ROM disks.The memory may store various objects or data, including caches, classes,frameworks, applications, backup data, jobs, web pages, web pagetemplates, database tables, repositories storing business and/or dynamicinformation, and any other appropriate information including anyparameters, variables, algorithms, instructions, rules, constraints, orreferences thereto. Additionally, the memory may include any otherappropriate data, such as logs, policies, security or access data,reporting files, as well as others. The processor and the memory can besupplemented by, or incorporated in, special purpose logic circuitry.

To provide for interaction with a user, implementations of the subjectmatter described in this specification can be implemented on a computerhaving a display device, for example, a CRT (cathode ray tube), LCD(liquid crystal display), LED (Light Emitting Diode), or plasma monitor,for displaying information to the user and a keyboard and a pointingdevice, for example, a mouse, trackball, or trackpad by which the usercan provide input to the computer. Input may also be provided to thecomputer using a touchscreen, such as a tablet computer surface withpressure sensitivity, a multi-touch screen using capacitive or electricsensing, or other type of touchscreen. Other kinds of devices can beused to provide for interaction with a user as well; for example,feedback provided to the user can be any form of sensory feedback, forexample, visual feedback, auditory feedback, or tactile feedback; andinput from the user can be received in any form, including acoustic,speech, or tactile input. In addition, a computer can interact with auser by sending documents to and receiving documents from a device thatis used by the user; for example, by sending web pages to a web browseron a user's client device in response to requests received from the webbrowser.

The term “graphical user interface,” or “GUI,” may be used in thesingular or the plural to describe one or more graphical user interfacesand each of the displays of a particular graphical user interface.Therefore, a GUI may represent any graphical user interface, includingbut not limited to, a web browser, a touch screen, or a command lineinterface (CLI) that processes information and efficiently presents theinformation results to the user. In general, a GUI may include aplurality of user interface (UI) elements, some or all associated with aweb browser, such as interactive fields, pull-down lists, and buttonsoperable by the business suite user. These and other UI elements may berelated to or represent the functions of the web browser.

Implementations of the subject matter described in this specificationcan be implemented in a computing system that includes a back-endcomponent, for example, as a data server, or that includes a middlewarecomponent, for example, an application server, or that includes afront-end component, for example, a client computer having a graphicaluser interface or a Web browser through which a user can interact withan implementation of the subject matter described in this specification,or any combination of one or more such back-end, middleware, orfront-end components. The components of the system can be interconnectedby any form or medium of wireline and/or wireless digital datacommunication, for example, a communication network. Examples ofcommunication networks include a local area network (LAN), a radioaccess network (RAN), a metropolitan area network (MAN), a wide areanetwork (WAN), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WIMAX),a wireless local area network (WLAN) using, for example, 802.11 a/b/g/nand/or 802.20, all or a portion of the Internet, and/or any othercommunication system or systems at one or more locations. The networkmay communicate with, for example, Internet Protocol (IP) packets, FrameRelay frames, Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) cells, voice, video,data, and/or other suitable information between network addresses.

The computing system can include clients and servers. A client andserver are generally remote from each other and typically interactthrough a communication network. The relationship of client and serverarises by virtue of computer programs running on the respectivecomputers and having a client-server relationship to each other.

In some implementations, any or all of the components of the computingsystem, both hardware and/or software, may interface with each otherand/or the interface using an application programming interface (API)and/or a service layer. The API may include specifications for routines,data structures, and object classes. The API may be either computerlanguage independent or dependent and refer to a complete interface, asingle function, or even a set of APIs. The service layer providessoftware services to the computing system. The functionality of thevarious components of the computing system may be accessible for allservice consumers via this service layer. Software services providereusable, defined business functionalities through a defined interface.For example, the interface may be software written in JAVA, C++, orother suitable language providing data in extensible markup language(XML) format or other suitable format. The API and/or service layer maybe an integral and/or a stand-alone component in relation to othercomponents of the computing system. Moreover, any or all parts of theservice layer may be implemented as child or sub-modules of anothersoftware module, enterprise application, or hardware module withoutdeparting from the scope of this disclosure.

While this specification contains many specific implementation details,these should not be construed as limitations on the scope of thespecification or on the scope of what may be claimed, but rather asdescriptions of features that may be specific to particularimplementations. Certain features that are described in thisspecification in the context of separate implementations can also beimplemented in combination in a single implementation. Conversely,various features that are described in the context of a singleimplementation can also be implemented in multiple implementationsseparately or in any suitable sub-combination. Moreover, althoughfeatures may be described as acting in certain combinations and eveninitially claimed as such, one or more features from a claimedcombination can in some cases be excised from the combination, and theclaimed combination may be directed to a sub-combination or variation ofa sub-combination.

Particular implementations of the subject matter have been described.Other implementations, alterations, and permutations of the describedimplementations are within the scope of the following claims as will beapparent to those skilled in the art. While operations are depicted inthe drawings or claims in a particular order, this should not beunderstood as requiring that such operations be performed in theparticular order shown or in sequential order, or that all illustratedoperations be performed (some operations may be considered optional), toachieve desirable results. In certain circumstances, multitasking andparallel processing may be advantageous.

Moreover, the separation and/or integration of various system modulesand components in the implementations described previously should not beunderstood as requiring such separation and/or integration in allimplementations, and it should be understood that the described programcomponents and systems can generally be integrated together in a singlesoftware product or packaged into multiple software products.

Accordingly, the previous description of example implementations doesnot define or constrain this disclosure. Other changes, substitutions,and alterations are also possible without departing from the spirit andscope of this disclosure.

1. A method for measuring water cut in fluid, comprising: attaching afirst waveguide to a production pipe that transports fluid, wherein thefirst waveguide is filled with a first filling material; transmitting amicrowave through the first waveguide, wherein the microwave is directedto the fluid in the production pipe; obtaining first measurement resultsbased on reflection or propagation of the microwave, wherein the firstmeasurement results are used to determine a water cut of the fluid;determining that the water cut is within a particular water cut range;in response to determining that the water cut is within a particularwater cut range, replacing the first waveguide with a second waveguide,wherein the second waveguide is filled with a second filling materialthat is different than the first filling material; transmitting a secondmicrowave through the second waveguide, wherein the second microwave isdirected to the fluid in the production pipe; and obtaining secondmeasurement results based on the second microwave, wherein the secondmeasurement results are used to determine the water cut of the fluid. 2.The method of claim 1, wherein the first filling material comprisesquartz.
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein the second filling materialcomprises sapphire.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the firstwaveguide has a size that is substantially similar to a size of theproduction pipe.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein the fluid is ahydrocarbon fluid transported between a first on-site endpoint and asecond on-site endpoint in a hydrocarbon producing system.
 6. The methodof claim 5, wherein the first on-site endpoint is a drilling mud tankand the second on-site endpoint is a pipe at the drilling site.
 7. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the fluid is a hydrocarbon fluid extracted bya wellbore drilling system to a storage tank at the drilling site.
 8. Amethod for measuring water cut in fluid, comprising: transmitting amicrowave through a first waveguide attached to a production pipethrough which a fluid flows, wherein the microwave is directed at thefluid, and wherein the first waveguide uses a first filling material;using measurement results based on reflection or propagation of themicrowave, determining that a water cut of the fluid is within aparticular water cut range; after transmitting the microwave through thefirst waveguide and determining that the water cut of the fluid iswithin the particular water cut range, replacing the first waveguidewith a second waveguide, wherein the second waveguide uses a secondfilling material that is different than the first filling material;transmitting a second microwave through the second waveguide, whereinthe second microwave is directed to the fluid in the production pipe;and obtaining second measurement results based on the second microwave.9. The method of claim 8, wherein the first filling material comprisesquartz.
 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the second filling materialcomprises sapphire.
 11. The method of claim 8, wherein the firstwaveguide has a size that is substantially similar to a size of theproduction pipe.
 12. The method of claim 8, wherein the fluid is ahydrocarbon fluid transported between a first on-site endpoint and asecond on-site endpoint in a hydrocarbon producing system.
 13. Themethod of claim 12, wherein the first on-site endpoint is a drilling mudtank and the second on-site endpoint is a pipe at the drilling site. 14.The method of claim 8, wherein the fluid is a hydrocarbon fluidextracted by a wellbore drilling system to a storage tank at thedrilling site.
 15. A water cut measuring system, comprising: a firstwaveguide attached to a production pipe at a first location, wherein thefirst waveguide is configured to direct microwaves to fluids in theproduction pipe, wherein the first waveguide is filled with a firstfilling material comprising electrical properties affecting transmissionof the microwave to the fluids; a second waveguide attached to theproduction pipe at a second location upstream or downstream of the firstlocation, wherein the second waveguide is configured to directmicrowaves to the fluids in the production pipe, wherein the secondwaveguide is filled with a second filling material that is differentthan the first filling material; a network analyzer connected with thefirst waveguide and the second waveguide, wherein the network analyzeris configured to: transmit microwaves to the first waveguide and thesecond waveguide; receive microwaves reflected from the fluid orpropagated through the fluids; and obtain measurement results based onthe reflected or propagated microwave, wherein the measurement resultsare used to determine a water cut of the fluid; and a controllercommunicatively coupled with the network analyzer, wherein thecontroller comprises: a memory; and at least one hardware processorcommunicatively coupled with the memory and configured to determine awater cut of the fluid based on the measurement results, wherein the atleast one hardware processor configured to determine that the water cutis within a particular water cut range; and in response to determiningthat the water cut is within a particular water cut range, determine asecond water cut of the fluid using the second waveguide.
 16. The watercut measuring system of claim 15, wherein the first filling materialcomprises quartz.
 17. The water cut measuring system of claim 16,wherein the second filling material comprises sapphire.
 18. The watercut measuring system of claim 15, wherein the first waveguide has a sizethat is substantially similar to a size of the production pipe.
 19. Thewater cut measuring system of claim 15, wherein the fluid is ahydrocarbon fluid transported between a first on-site endpoint and asecond on-site endpoint in a hydrocarbon producing system.
 20. The watercut measuring system of claim 19, wherein the first on-site endpoint isa drilling mud tank and the second on-site endpoint is a pipe at thedrilling site.